'How could I say no?' asks Aoibhin after pet proposal

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It's puppy love for Fair City's Aoibhin Garrihy and her hotelier beau who will walk her down the aisle.

The actress, best known for playing Neasa Dillon on the popular RTE soap, got engaged to long term love John Burke over the weekend.

The Dublin beauty was all smiles after her businessman other half popped the question in a unique way.

Instead of opting for the traditional method of getting down on one knee, John enlisted the help of the couple's pet pooch to help him with the proposal.

John, who runs the Armada Hotel in Spanish Point in Clare, attached a heart-shaped tag to the dog's collar with "Marry me?" etched into it.

The Fall actress wasted no time in sharing the news with her followers on Twitter.

"How could I say no to that face?," she said as she posted a picture of their pet and its special tag.

The actress previously admitted she hoped to wed Mr Burke, adding that they were waiting for the right time.

The romantic proposal actress Aoibhinn Garrihy got from her partner

"I'd like to think we are heading that way in time, but at the moment we're both really happy and really busy," she told VIP magazine.

"And I guess it's all about timing."

The Clare woman has certainly had a busy year.

Aoibhin Garrihy

Just a few months ago, the blonde jetted to China to perform on a tour of The Gate Theatre's production of Pride and Prejudice.

"It's certainly one way to tick China off the bucket list in style," she told the Herald.

She has a hectic work schedule but whenever she has some downtime, Aoibhin races back to her some county to be reunited with John.

"I travel to Clare most weekends to see my boyfriend. It's so beautiful down there," she said.

She's been making her mark in acting since leaving Fair City in 2013 and has starred in a variety of stage and TV shows, including BBC drama The Fall.

Speaking about her decision to leave life in Carrigstown behind, Aoibhin admitted it was a difficult choice to make after working on the soap for over three years.

"It certainly wasn't an easy decision to leave," she said at the time. "My head was saying one thing and my heart was saying another.

"But you don't train as an actor to play one role for the rest of your life."

While she's eager to spread her wings in the acting world, Aoibhin said she won't be making a permanent move overseas to pursue her career because she's too happy with her set-up in Ireland.

"There's no point just moving over [to London] and saying 'we'll see what happens'," she said.

"I'm a bit of a home bird anyway and for me to move to London when John is in Clare and I'm quite involved in the family business as well, that would scare the life out of me."

Aoibhin's family runs the Clare Doolin2Aran ferry company and the actress is passionate about the business. The stage star was on hand last weekend at the launch of a new €6m pier in her home town of Doolin.

"This is a great day for the village and for the neighbouring towns - it is going to really drive business," she said.